Jon Fitch hung his gloves up for good on Saturday night after a submission loss to Neiman Gracie in the co-main event of Bellator 246, and afterwards the 42-year-old spoke to reporters about his decision.
“I had a lot of fun, but at the same time, the body doesn’t react the way I want it to anymore,” Fitch said. “The recovery’s not quite the same. I don’t want to go down a dirty road, so I think it’s a great time. 32-8-2-1, it’s pretty good. I’ve got the titles I’ve won. Neiman is a great fighter and a great guy and a total class act, I hope he keeps moving forward and hopefully becomes the champ. That would be great.”
The former UFC fighter also took time to reminisce about some of the many highlights from his long career.
“[The] two biggest moments were the Georges St. Pierre fight, and when I got to fight in Brazil, just because all everything around those fights, the build-up, the experiences, it was all awesome,” he confessed. “The [World Series of Fighting] final title fight was amazing. Jake Shields and Madison Square Garden was amazing. It’s a list of hits.”
Fitch bows out of the sport with a 32-8-2 (+1nc) record, including a 14-3-1 run in the UFC, and along with fighting for the UFC welterweight title he also went on to win WSOF’s 170lb title and successfully defended it twice.
